


A little thing called love

by professorriversong



Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: F/M, bit of angst and fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-05-31
Updated: 2013-05-31
Packaged: 2017-12-13 12:19:27
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,676
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/824245
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/professorriversong/pseuds/professorriversong
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>River and the Doctor are caught in the cross-fire during a date, which turns into more of a nightmare</p>
            </blockquote>





	A little thing called love

**Author's Note:**

> My first published River/11 story knocked up in a few hours because I wanted to write something simple. Working on a longer work but not sure whether it is worth publishing or not.  
> River/11 is my absolute OTP so I wanted to write something. No real spoilers or anything.  
> Would appreciate the support, thanks

The Doctor ran across the room as fast as he could, trying to ignore the sound of guns going off in every direction. He ducked down underneath the bar where at least he had a little cover and tried to get his head straight. His hearts were beating hard against his ribs and he could feel the blood pulsing at his temples. River, oh God where was River? 

He had been so concerned with getting to somewhere sheltered that he hadn’t noticed her fall behind, and he was beginning to panic. This was not one of the usual disasters they ran into with complex characters and ulterior motives which took hours to unravel. No, this was something far simpler and far more dangerous; war.

The war between the Sontarans and the Cybermen had been raging for millennia in some form or another. Whether it was full scale battle between armies or a chance encounter, when the two races got together there was always bloodshed. This time it had simply been an unfortunate meeting when two ships both tried to storm a classy restaurant nestled in Saturn’s rings.

Both species were built for warfare, with Sontaran clones and Cybermen produced by the thousand every day, and more often than not they reached deadlock; but not before many innocent people were killed in the process. 

The Doctor had just been trying to give River a nice evening for once without any strings attached, but with them it could never be that straightforward. And now he had abandoned her; what a date this was turning out to be. He turned around and peered up over the bar counter, but had to duck back down as a blast narrowly missed his head. Crouched down with his only weapon his screwdriver, the Doctor realised that he was not in the strongest of positions. 

Sitting there for a moment, dumbfounded, the Doctor honestly did not know what to do. Fortunately enough for him, he was married to someone who did. River ran up to the bar, shooting behind her as she went, and slid across the counter dropping elegantly beside the Doctor blaster still in hand. She gave him a brilliant smile.  
‘Hello sweetie.’  
‘River, I…you were right behind me…’  
‘Not quite,’ she whispered. ‘I had to kick a few of those Sontarans into touch before they started messing with the oxygen systems. Most of the other people managed to get into the escape pods and the Tardis is about thirty Cybermen that way.’ 

She pointed to the left before tucking a strand of her wild hair behind her ear. The Doctor didn’t say anything for a while, just looking at her and wondering how someone so brave could be so beautiful without even realising it. Her eyes were sparkling, the deepest pools of green flecked with gold which he loved to drown in. The dress she had chosen was long and black, simple but perfectly able to highlight the curves of her body with a slit in the skirt venturing high enough to be dangerously suggestive.

‘Doctor,’ River hissed, bringing his attention back to the issue in hand.  
‘Yes, well, yes I was…yes…’ he stuttered, and she couldn’t help but smile.  
‘I was saying that we’ll just have to make a run for it. I can hopefully give us a window if I shoot over the counter and you go first.’  
‘I went first last time,’ the Doctor reminded her, ‘and that didn’t end too well.’  
‘True,’ grinned River, ‘but I’m all for second chances.’  
‘I bet you are.’  
They were close to each other, mere inches away and more than anything the Doctor wanted to reach over and kiss her; he knew that he couldn’t. It was too dangerous to stay here longer than they had to but her scent was overpowering him, a mixture of pistol fumes and rosewater perfume which somehow mingled together beautifully.

‘Are you ready?’  
‘I’ll meet you back at the Tardis,’ the Doctor said, leaning in and kissing his wife lightly on the cheek; to hell with danger. He could have sworn that he saw her blush for a moment, but it could have been the light.  
‘Okay…go!’

It all happened in a flash. River started shooting over the bar and the Doctor started running, weaving between upturned tables and jumping over fallen chairs. There was chaos everywhere, but the soldiers seemed more concerned by their own petty battle than with the passers-by.

It seemed like an age before he reached the Tardis, who thankfully was already open for him. The Doctor stumbled through the doors, almost overbalancing and falling before managing to catch himself. He turned to see River running towards the Tardis dodging gunfire left right and centre. She flung her own gun to one side, out of ammunition, and did her best to avoid the onslaught from the group of Sontarans on her tail. 

At the last moment, River’s heel caught on the skirt of her dress and she fell through the Tardis doors and into the Doctor’s arms where he just managed to catch her without falling to the floor himself. The doors closed behind them, the Tardis already sending them off into the vortex for safety’s sake, and he helped River back to her feet. She didn’t seem quite stable at first, but she held onto the railing of the stairs to support herself. Her hand was trembling slightly and she seemed to be preoccupied.

‘Hey,’ said the Doctor, gently stroking the side of River’s face with the back of his hand, ‘are you okay?’  
‘Yes, fine,’ she assured him, shrugging it off. ‘Damn dress, I knew it was too long. Never go on a date in a dress you can’t run away in.’  
He noticed a rip in her sleeve and uncovered a gash, small but deep, in her arm when he moved the torn fabric aside.  
‘Oh River that looks painful.’ It was bleeding a little, but the skin surrounding the wound had quickly become red and inflamed.  
‘It’s nothing, really,’ she insisted, ‘I’ve had far worse and lived to tell the tale.’  
‘That’s a blaster wound it needs to be dressed quickly, it might be deeper-‘  
‘Sweetie, it’s fine,’ smiled River, walking past him and up the stairs towards the console, ‘it missed, for the most part; it’s just a graze.’ She lifted her skirts to avoid tripping again and the Doctor knew that this was a fight he was not about to win.

He started walking up to her, but noticed something on the floor which made him stop. There was a small pool of deep scarlet glistening on the floor where River had been standing.  
‘River,’ he rasped, trying to find the words, ‘there’s blood…’  
‘What? It’s hardly even bleeding, look-‘ River’s words were cut short as a stabbing pain in her abdomen caused her to double over. Tentatively, she put a hand to her side and felt where her dress had soaked through. When she brought her hand back up it was covered in blood.

The Doctor looked over to her and saw her hands now shimmering red. She was just staring at them as if she couldn't quite comprehend what was happening. At first she only wobbled, managing to steady herself, but then her legs seemed to lose the ability to hold her up and she fell heavily against the Tardis console.

Sprinting the few feet towards her, the Doctor could hear every beat of his hearts. He didn't know what to do but he knew that he was frightened. He had never seen River injured before and it was unnerving. Her face was as white as the first winter’s snow, that certainty and air of confidence she always possessed shaken if not gone. 

‘What happened?’  
‘I was shot apparently,’ she said rather nonchalantly but with a tremor in her voice. Her hand had gone to her side and was pushing against the painful area to try to stem the bleeding but with little success.  
‘River we have to get you to a hospital,’ the Doctor told her seriously.  
‘No.’  
‘No? You've been shot!’  
‘I know,’ River mumbled.  
‘Then why can’t we go?’  
‘Because…because last time you took me to a hospital you left me there. After what I had just done for you I was left, because with you there is always somewhere else to be. And that’s fine most of the time, but no matter how many times you promise you won’t go you will for some valiant reason or another and I’ll be escorted back to prison handcuffed to an gurney where they don’t really care if you’ve been shot or not. That’s why.’

The Doctor didn't know quite how to respond. He felt guilt rise in his throat like vomit, suffocating him, but he kept it down.  
‘I…I'm sorry I…’  
‘Didn't know? Of course you didn't, because I didn't want you to know. It isn't your fault, none of it is, but sometimes I need my Doctor rather than an actual professional.’  
The pain returned to stab at her side, this time with more vigour, and River let go of the console falling to the floor; only she didn't. His arms were around her as soon as she had let go and he held her tightly but gently.  
‘I told you that I would always catch you when you fall.’  
‘Did you?’  
‘Ah, well, I probably will at some stage,’ he rambled, gently picking her up and carrying her deeper into the Tardis. She hardly weighed anything at all.  
‘Spoilers,’ whispered River, resting her head against his chest and looping her hands around his neck.

The Tardis quickly provided them with the door to a bedroom, where the Doctor lay River down on the bed. She winced a little, trying to hide her pain though of course it didn't go unnoticed.  
‘Are you sure about this?’ River nodded.  
‘I don’t think it’s that serious,’ she started, but the Doctor raised a questioning eyebrow. ‘Fine, maybe it is but it could be worse. If it has been a laser or a blaster it would have torn me in half hitting me there. It must have been a standard range pistol.’ River winced again, a little more noticeably and curled her hand into a fist.  
‘We should stop the bleeding,’ the Doctor thought aloud.  
‘Well yes honey that might be a start,’ tutted River sarcastically. He sat on the bed beside her.  
‘May I?’ She nodded as her lifted her dress to expose her stomach, feeling almost intrusive in doing so.

The bullet had entered River’s abdomen on the left side, and although it hadn't gone deep into her flesh it had caused some damage on the way. The hole was quite large and messy, covered in blood which was still oozing from the wound. The Doctor went to the adjoining bathroom and found a small towel which he pressed to River’s side hard to try and stop the bleeding. River gasped in pain, digging her fingers into her palms.  
‘River?’ the Doctor asked, hating to watch her in pain.  
‘I…I'm f-fine,’ she lied, her entire body beginning to tremble.  
‘River I don’t think this is a good idea.’  
‘No, it is, just…just use the sonic. See where the bullet is. If it’s close enough you can take it out.’  
‘Without any painkillers? That would be-‘  
‘Like hell, I know,’ acknowledged River, ‘but then it’ll be done.’

The Doctor used his spare hand to pull the sonic screwdriver from inside his jacket and scanned her as quickly as he could.  
‘The bullet isn’t in too deep. I could use the sonic as a magnet and guide it out but-‘  
‘I may not quite be able to regenerate, but I’m a quick healer. What would kill some people I’ve managed to heal in a day or two, so whatever happens I’ll be okay. Don’t worry about me, just do it,’ River encouraged him.  
‘I always worry about you,’ he answered honestly. River looked at him, trying to fathom exactly what he was trying to tell her but not quite wanting to realise what it was.  
‘Ready?’  
‘Go on then,’ she sighed, lying back and biting her lip. 

He removed the towel and positioned the sonic just above the bullet’s entry wound. The bleeding had slowed at least; hopefully that would make it easier. The Doctor slipped his spare hand into River’s, squeezing it tightly in reassurance, before changing the screwdriver’s settings and holding it down.

River screamed, a sound which struck a chord deep within the Doctor’s soul and brought tears to his eyes. She gripped his hand so tightly that he was worried she would hurt herself further, but he had to keep going. She was trying to keep still, but the pain was so intense that her entire body wanted to curl up into a ball. It was like fire, curling up from her stomach and swallowing her entire body in a sea of flames which burned more intensely every second. It felt as if it had been going on forever. 

He couldn't do it. Watching her suffer this much at his hand; it was his own nightmares reborn. The Doctor wanted to stop but he knew that the bullet needed to be removed, that it would make her better. It didn’t feel as if it was helping her. River had closed her eyes, and her grip on his hand slackened. The Doctor watched the rise and fall of her chest slow down.  
‘River?’ he shouted, finding his eyes stinging with tears. ‘RIVER!’ She didn't respond. 

The sonic beeped and the bullet appeared on the surface of her skin, where the Doctor picked it up and threw it across the room. He knelt beside the bed so his head was level with hers and stroked her hair.  
‘River…please…’ he begged, leaning over and kissing her forehead. There was a moment when he genuinely thought that he had lost her, even though his conscience told him it was impossible. Her death was fixed, a point in her future and his past which could not be changed. Still, it didn't stop him from thinking the worst. When it came to River reason was thrown out of the window first and foremost.  
‘D-doc-‘

River’s eyes began to flutter open, although reluctantly. The Doctor held his head in his hands for a moment. She was back.  
‘River? Oh God never do that to me again, never!’  
‘Sweetie,’ she smiled weakly, turning slowly onto her right side to face him but without further damaging her wound. The Doctor placed a hand on her cheek and kissed her softly on the lips.  
‘I’m here. You did it, you’re fine. Now you need to get some sleep, okay? Just for a bit. I’ll find a bandage. You’re exhausted River, it’s okay close your eyes.’ She did as she was bid, unable really to do otherwise. Before she drifted off to sleep, she muttered two words.  
‘Love you.’

The Doctor felt his heart warming beneath his chest. She wasn't better, but she was alive and for him right now that was enough. The Tardis helped him to find some medical supplies so he could wash the wound and bandage her midriff tightly. He lowered her dress to cover it as best he could and found a blanket to cover her.

When he was finished, he climbed onto the bed beside her and laid a protective arm over her shoulder; his head was nestled in her hair.  
‘You are amazing you know,’ the Doctor whispered. ‘I don’t know what I would do without you, and I don’t say it enough. I haven’t quite been able to admit it to myself, through fear or…I don’t know. But I do, River. I always have, though I haven’t quite known it until now. You’re my everything.’

The Doctor sighed, closing his eyes and intertwined his hand with hers once more.

‘I love you.’


End file.
